Coin or token dispenser



Nov. 2, 1937.

I, H. WILSEY 2,097,610

com OR TOKEN DISPENSER Filed Oct. 21, 1936 2 Sheet-Sheet 1' 20 16% W; b'g 7%4: [IA u- I I x 6 I 14 7 55 12 I 56 30 50 U 1 k 62 J i I [rven H Vl jlsey INVENTOR.

[1"]; ATTOR v.

I. H. WILSEY 2,097,610

COIN OR TOKEN DISPENSER Filed Oct. 21, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 [rven if I Vjlse 1N VENTOR.

H15 ATTO EY.

Patented Nov. 2, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,097,610 COIN OR TOKEN DISPENSER Irven H. Wilscy, Chicago, Ill. Application October 21, 1936, Serial No. 106,719

'1 Claims.

This invention relates to coin dispensers, and has for one of its important objects the provision of a. novel coin or token storage device, means for automatically stacking coins in the coin storage tube, and means for automatically ejecting coins from the tube. p

A more specific object is the provision of an inclined coin storage tube adapted to receive coins at one extremity thereof, and provided with an ejecting member at the other extremity thereof for releasing or discharging coins, together with power driven means for rotating the .tube so as to stack coins deposited thereinin an orderly manner to facilitate ejection and economize storage space.

A further important result oi the novel construction outlined above is the lessening of the load on the ejecting slide where a large number of coins are stored due to the angular disposition of the coins, the motor or driving means necessary for theoperation of such slide therefore requiring appreciably less power.

The invention also provides novel ejecting control means and other important structural and functional objects which will appear as the following detailed description proceeds in View of the annexed drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side view in section taken along the lines 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a lower end view of the ejecting slide taken in the direction of lines 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is an interior end view of the mechanism of Fig. 4 taken inthe direction of lines 5-5 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional detail taken along the lines 6-6 of Fig. 1;

Fig. '7 is an operating detail of the ratchet mechanism for the commutator and taken along the lines 1-1 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 8 is a vertical sectional detail along the lines 8-8 of Fig. '7; and

Fig; 9'is a circuit diagram.

Heretofore it has been a common practice to support coin storage tubes in substantially vertical position with the coin receiving opening at the upper extremity of the tube so that the entire weight of the coins rested upon the closure, commonly a coin slide or ejector, at the bottom of the tube, thus effecting a gravity feed for the ejecting mechanism, but also in the case of larger installations applying a very considerable load directly upon the coin slide mechanism due to the aggregate weight of the coins so that the driving mechanism for the ejecting slide of necessity was a relatively powerful device to insure positive ejecting action. In addition in these former types of coin chute the likelihood of improper stacking was an element of importance and the vertical positioning of the storage tube took up an unnecessary amount of space.

The present invention obviates the foregoing difiiculties by the provision, as shown in Fig. 1, of an inclined coin storage tube l2 rotatably 10 supported at its upper extremity in a bracket l4, this extremity having communication with the lower end of a coin chute or funnel 16 adapted to receive coins through any form of depositing opening or mechanism, generally indicated at I8, in the upper wall of a housing or cabinet 20.

The lower end of the coin tube i2 is rotatably seated in a lower bracket 22 which also serves as a partial support for an ejecting mechanism (see Fig. 3) which comprises a pair of spaced plates 24 having an ejecting slide 26 slidably positioned therebetween for movement in an upward direction against the tension of a pair of springs 28 (Fig. 4) having their respective upper extremities attached by means of pins 30 extended from the ejecting plate 26 through a pair of slots 3| and having their lowermost extremities anchored to the outermost plate 24 by means of pins 29, such that a coin opening 21 in the lower part of the plate 26 may be registered with the lower open extremity of the tube l2 to receive a coin therefrom by urging the gate or ejector slide 26 upwardly against the tension of the springs 28.

It will be observed that the extreme lower end of the tube I2 is seated in an opening in the innermost of the parallel plates 24 so as to bring the lower mouth of the tube l2 as close as possible to the slide 26, the tube 12 being provided with a collar portion 25 adapted to bear against 0 the innermost surface of the inner plate 24 to keep the tube in position during its rotation.

The outermost of the plates 24 is provided in its lower region with a square opening 32 (Figs. 3 and 4) behind which is a spring member 34 supported on the innermost plate 24 so as to urge a coin positioned behind the opening 32 by the downward movement of the slide 26 outwardly through the opening in a desired receptacle such as the chute 36 shown in Fig. l.

The rotation of the storage tube I2 is effected by means of a ring gear 38 (Figs. 1 and 2) embracing the tube at a desired point intermediate its extremities and engageable with a worm gear 49 on the shaft of a driving motor 42, the ratio of the gearing and the rate of speed of the motor being suited to the speed such,

conductor 14, through .the relay and back to battery, thus energizing the relay and 40 SWitChj 6 3 to start themotor 42. V

" Totime the operation of motor 42, I have pro- 70 been'se? D is moved out of contacting engage- V ment Withits respective contact finger to deenergize the relay 62' and open the circuit for" m tor 4 2. i l a e ective mecha nism for. determining the Th ar P eiecfifig perators o he j ing closing its motor 42. a

mechanism includes a having common connection with the conductor The lowermost extremity of the tube I2 is provided with a cam plate In'order to reset the commutator drum, I have provided a manually operable lever 96 (see Figs.

1,' G and 7) having one extremity extended exteriorly of the cabinet 20 and having its lowermost extremity connected 7 turn is extended from and 'ring gears 38 and-40,

7 effective to align and properly stack the coins C in the tube. V V

With each revolution of the tube .12,

V thereon will transiently engage the upper part raised position, such coin being urged out of the lower opening 34 in g of the presser spring 34. This latter operation will be repeated until the particular contact path 56 corresponding to the contact finger 58, which.

is in'circuit with the particular selectively oper- -able switch'59 actuated by the operator of the Vmachine, passes out of engagement with its contactfinger to release the relay 62 and stop the It will be apparent to those skilled in the art force of gravity when the gate or slide was in i the front plate 24 by means that the mechanism herein described for purposes of illustration is susceptible of modification; for example, the ejector slide may be arranged to operate any desired number of times per revolution of the tube by properly reforming the cam 33 and providing a corresponding number of commutator operating studs or fins l3 on the tube. The coin tube may be also arranged for multiple operation so as to handle coins of different denomination. It will also be apparent that the angle at which the coin tube may be inclined is variable between the vertical and the horizontal, but I have found that by inclining the tube at an angle of approximately to the horizontal, very satisfactory results are obtained.

The particular details of construction and operation set forth for purposes of explanation and illustration are not intended as limitations, but are to be liberally interpreted in the light of the annexed claims.

I claim:

1. A coin stacking device comprising an inclined storage tube supported for rotation about its longitudinal axis, means for rotating said tube, means for directing coins into the upper extremity thereof, and ejecting means closing the lower end of said tube and having an ejecting member operable by means rotatable with said tube.

2. A coin stacking device comprising an inclined storage tube supported for rotation about its longitudinal axis and adapted to receive coins into its uppermost extremity, means for rotating said tube whereby the said coins will be stacked in alignment therein, together with means positioned at the lower extremity of the tube for releasably retaining coins therein.

3. A coin dispensing device comprising an elongated tube, means supporting said tube for rotation about its longitudinal axis and at an angle inclined away from the vertical, driven means for rotating said tube, means co-operable with said supporting means at the lower extremity of said tube and including a reciprocable member for releasably retaining coins in the tube, a driving member rotatable by said tube and having operative engagement with said reciprocable member to operate the latter a determined number of times during one revolution of said tube.

4. A coin dispensing device including an inclined coin storage tube supported for rotation about its longitudinal axis, electrical means for rotating said tube, means including a reciprocable ejecting slide positioned at the lower extremity of the tube for ejecting coins from the latter, together with means including a switching device operable by a member on said tube to energize said electrical driving means during a predetermined number of revolutions of said tube.

5. A coin dispensing device comprising an elongated coin storage tube supported at its longitudinal extremities for rotation about its long axis, means including a driven gear embracing said tube and a driving gear engageable therewith for rotating the tube, means for selectively ejecting coins from the tube including an apertured gate member supported at the lower end of the tube for r-eciprocable movement transversely of the tube to bring the apertured part thereof in registration with the open end of the tube, yieldable means urging said gate member with the apertured part thereof out of registration with the tube, means including a cam plate rotatably carried on the lower end of the tube for operative engagement with said gate member to raise the latter against said yieldable means a determined number of times for each revolution of the tube, together with selector means for determining the number of revolutions of said tube and including a rotatable commutator member having a plurality of contact paths of varying length, a plurality of contact fingers respectively engageable with one of each of said contact paths, each of the said fingers being selectively connectible in circuit with a source of power through a said contact path with motor means driving said driving gear, and means for rotating said commutator member including a pawl and ratchet mechanism operatively associated therewith and drivingly engageable with a member on said tube once per revolution of the latter whereby the said motor means may be driven to rotate said tube a number of times corresponding to the number of operations of said pawl and ratchet means necessary to rotate the said commutator member and the particular contact path thereon placed in circuit with the particular contact finger selected until said contact path is rotated out of contacting engagement with its said finger to deenergize said motor means.

6. A coin dispensing device including an elongated storage member supported in inclined position for rotation about its long axis, driving means for rotating said storage member, means for selectively ejecting coins from said member including a movable ejector member supported at the lower end thereof and having a part transiently engageable by means on and movable with said storage member to effect the release of a coin from the latter a predetermined number of times per revolution.

7. A coin dispensing device including an elongated storage member supported in inclined position for rotation about its long axis, electrical driving means for rotating said storage member, means for selectively ejecting coins from said member including a movable ejector member supported at the lower end thereof and having a part transiently engageable by means on and movable with said storage member to effect the release of a coin from the latter a determined number of times per revolution, and selector means for determining the number of revolutions of said tube and including a movable switch member having a plurality of contact parts of different length, selectively operable contact means for connecting one of said parts in circuit with said driving means to start the latter, and automatic means including mechanism driven by said rotating storage member to move said switch member so as to move a said contact part out of contact with a said selectively operable contact means, the number of revolutions made by the storage member corresponding to the length of the contact part selected.

IRVEN H. WILSEY. 

